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We have been silenced. Our votes are not being counted. But we have ideas. We have dreams that we want to share and we know ways that may lead to more justice. We have plans for a better society and want to engage in saving our environment. We have all of that and much more! Nevertheless, we are not allowed to participate: we are not allowed to vote. 

We are people without German citizenship. We live, love, work, pay taxes, and have been involved in Germany for years. We are the 14 percent!

The next federal election will take place in less than three months. And this goes on without the votes of 14 percent of the German population. That is almost ten million votes that AGAIN will not be represented. Together we are more than the entire population of Austria!

And AGAIN we are not allowed to vote. Germany has one of the toughest laws in the world when it comes to the right to vote for non-nationals. This shows that it has not yet been understood what democracy means or what it can be.

The reason: we do not hold a German passport. German citizenship is a basic requirement in order to be able to participate in the most important form of political participation, such as federal and state elections.

Enough is enough! It is unbearable that almost ten million residents are excluded from the most important political instrument of every state, and this is only because we lack the privileges. The right to vote must be a right, not a privilege! We don't want to just watch the next general election from the distance again. As a democratic country, Germany has to change its undemocratic laws. Therefore we demand:

Federal election rights as well as local election rights for all people who have been living in Germany for at least five years.

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FAQ:

1. Why is the right to vote important?

The right to vote is the basic pillar of a democracy. Without this right, people cannot participate in shaping their society. Democracy implies the integration of different visions in order to build a common future. Democracy embodies the idea of ​​diversity. Without the right to vote, people without German citizenship are excluded from society.

2. Is this crazy or just a fantasy?

No. In other countries, this right to self-determination is already a reality. There are many examples where the right to vote belongs not only to citizens but to residents who live in the respective country for a certain period of time:In South Korea, non-nationals who have lived there for more than three years have the right to vote. In Chile and Colombia, residents get the right to vote after five years. In Ireland, Scotland and Wales, everyone can vote in local elections. In Poland, UK, Spain, Portugal and Luxembourg, non-nationals are allowed to vote in local elections depending on reciprocity agreements with other countries.

3. Why don't people just get naturalized?

There are various hurdles that prevent people from obtaining the German citizenship. The following requirements are placed on us:

- ability to secure livelihood without social assistance or unemployment benefits

- sufficient knowledge of German

- not being convicted of a crime

- and in most cases: giving up the other nationality

There are thousands of people who were born in Germany or who have lived in Germany for more than a few decades without having German citizenship. The reasons are varied. Either we are not eligible, for example because we don't want to give up our other nationality, or because we simply don't want the German citizenship at all. But we want to vote along with our communities anyway!

4. Why shouldn't naturalization be a prerequisite for the right to vote?

To be naturalized means to get German citizenship. As explained in more detail in question 3, naturalization is not barrier-free. The right to vote, on the other hand, is about exercising democratic participation and building up freedom and self-determination for all people, regardless of their origin.

5. Why do we demand the right to vote after five years of residence in Germany?
We know that political change requires an engagement with reality, so we draw inspiration from the experience of others. Successful experiences from Chile, Colombia, South Korea and other countries have shown that after five years people usually acquire enough knowledge about the political situation of a country and thus can and should make a contribution to shaping it.

6. How did we calculate the 14 percent?

Data from the Federal Statistics Office - Population and Employment: Results from the Foreign Nationals Center (March 29, 2021)

The number of all people without German citizenship until December 31, 2021 was 11,432,460. The number of 9,695,372 to account for those with a legal age for voting is an approximation with [-175032, + 262548] error interval

7. Why is this also a question of anti-racism?

Most migrants and people who have migrated are affected by racism and other forms of discrimination. Without the right to vote, there is no possibility to fight for one's own human rights on a political level.